God Give Me Strength was first performed 10 years ago on April 11 1995. Elvis was doing a series of support slots on a U.K.tour by Bob Dylan , in effect road testing songs that he would record with the Attractions for All This Useless Beauty.
The final date was at The Point , Dublin.
http://www.expectingrain.com/dok/set/95/1995.html
Amongst many new tracks he did GGMS , introducing it as a song he had just written. With just guitar accompaniment he sang about half of hat would be the finished song -
Now I have nothing, so God give me strength
'Cause I'm weak in her wake
And if I'm strong I might still break
And I don't have anything to share
That I won't throw away into the air
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out
She was the light that I'd bless
She took my last chance at happiness
So God give me strength, God give me strength
I can't hold onto her, God give me strength
When the phone doesn't ring
And I'm lost in imagining
Everything that kind of love is worth
As I tumble back down to the earth
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out
She was the light that I'd bless
She took my last chance at happiness
So God give me strength.
Perhaps the song was yet to be finished . However listening to an audience tape it can be heard that Elvis makes a mistake in the third last line of the repeat of the chorus , singing 'She took the light that I'd bless' instead of 'She was the light that I'd bless' . Maybe this error - he paused ever so slightly after making it - threw him of course and he truncated the version.
In subsequent interviews Elvis told of returning to his Dublin home and faxing the lyric / singing it into the answerphone of L.A. resident Burt Bachrach, continuing the process of completing a joint composition for a movie soundtrack. The rest of the Dylan show had been hectic. After guesting along with Van Morrison with Dylan on stage , a mishap involving another guest must have caused consternation all round. Then Dublin resident Carole King had a fall backstage after the show , breaking her arm.
In due course the All This Useless Beauty sessions commenced. A comment on the later re-issue states -
http://www.geocities.com/ned3705/atub.html
GOD GIVE ME STRENGTH (ALTERNATE VERSION)
Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach wrote "God Give Me Strength" to be sung by the main character in the film Grace Of My Heart. It apparently took quite some time before somebody came up with the idea of Elvis and Burt also recording it together, and before that happened Elvis recorded this version with the Attractions during the All This Useless Beauty sessions. It was included in a preliminary lineup for Rhino's reissue, and Elvis even mentions it in the liner notes. But according to Elvis, "no decent mix of it has come to light," hence its ultimate exclusion. Why not remix it from the multitracks, Elvis?
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Having heard this version , I would suggest another , more practical reason for its exclusion . In short , Elvis' vocal is poor . He semi-mumbles the last few lines . The musical backing is also rather basic. The drum effect behind the all important 'I want him/ I want him to hurt ' compares very badly with the subsequent U.S. studio version.
It does , however , feature the rest of the songs lyric -
God if she'd grant me her indulgence and decline
I might as well wipe her from my memory
Fracture the spell as she becomes my enemy
Maybe I was washed out like a lip-print on his shirt
See, I'm only human, I want him to hurt
I want him
I want him to hurt
[instrumental]
Since I lost the power to pretend
That there could ever be a happy ending
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out
She was the light that I'd bless
She took my last chance at happiness
So God give me strength, God give me strength
What with all of Elvis' other activities that year - Meltdown , ATUB recording etc - and the slowness of movie production it would be 1996 before the next step of this songs life.
The Grace Of My Heart film -
see
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116442/
'Riveting tale about an aspiring singer, Edna Buxton (Denise Waverly) wonderfully played by Illeana Douglas, who sacrifices her own singing career to write hit songs that launch the careers of other singers. The film follows her life from her first break, through the pain of rejection from the recording industry and a bad marriage, to her final triumph in realizing her dream to record her own hit album.'
- was going to feature modern day song writers doing songs in a 1960's style. Elvis 'n Burts song would be sung by a lady singer. However it was decided to do a version by the composers. On Monday February 12th 1996 they , along with session musicians , assembled at Right Track Studio, New York. A lengthy session ensued , with the perfectionism of both principals bringing out great performances by all concerned , especially drummer Chris Parker.
http://www.parkerdrum.com/
He has given me permission to share these memories of the session -
I was particuliarly impressed with Elvis that day because although
having just flown in from London,jet-lagged and all, he sang
consistently great, in full voice, through every rundown while the
arrangement was fine-tuned.Each take, got better and more emotional
than the one before.
Also,a lot of people from the movie side of the production were
hanging out in the control room gradually entering into the recording
process making small suggestions and comments during
playbacks, until,finally,his patience at an end,Burt B. turned to the
most enthusiastic of these folks and said pointedly,"....it's not
about... 'the MOVIE' !
That put everyone back on track with the recording.
The finished version eventually turned up on the film soundtrack in Sept. 1996. Illeana Douglas performance of the song in the film was dubbed by Kristen Vigard . Her version eventually turned up on a 1999 compilation -
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... 49-9305658
Heart Beats: Love Scene - Romantic Movie Music
Various Artists
Audio CD (January 19, 1999)
Original Release Date: January 19, 1999
Label: Rhino Records
Catalog: #75570
ASIN: B00000GC0V
Ms Vigard's vocal is perfect here, accurately catching the barely restrained emotion that the film's character is feeling. Kristen recorded it again - less successfully - in 2004 , see
http://www.kristenvigard.net/.
Incidentally , some lyric sites state that , besides the gender alterations for the female vocal version , the line ' This bell is rung out ' is replaced by the rather dire pun ' This belle is wrung out'.
The song has gone on to be covered many times -
see
http://home.cfl.rr.com/jdha/stuff/ecmco ... ist.html#g
- I've only heard - and liked - Alison Moyet's version. I can't wait to hear The Chubbies doing a 'Surf' version!
Elvis continues to perform the song, most recently in Buxton , England.
God Give Me Strength , 10 years old on April 11
Moderator: mark